Southern Gothic: Chapter Twelve

The Imp of the Perverse

Hello y’all—

Boy do we have a DOOZY for you today, folks! Welcome to Chapter Twelve of Southern Gothic : “The Imp of the Perverse.”

Before we get to our feature attraction, let’s take care of some business. First off: keep those messages coming! Y’all continue to shower us with a BOUNTY of responses and I can’t tell you how much we appreciate it. Next month will be our third installment of the Southern Gothic reader correspondence feature, The Purloined Letters. If you want a chance to have your message included in our post, drop us a line at thenewfuturists@gmail.com before the end of April! As always, remember to include “Southern Gothic” in the subject and if you’re okay with your letter being featured please indicate “OKAY TO PRINT.”

Oh and honey, did you hear the news? We’ve got merch! Show how much you love your favorite literary luminary with our Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams, and Carson McCullers corner box stickers. And don’t you worry, gentle reader, we will be rolling out additional stickers throughout the year!

Okay, so have y’all heard about Substack Notes? Notes is a new space on Substack for sharing links, short posts, quotes, photos, and more. If you’re a regular reader, you know that I don’t particularly care for social media. But I recognize the roll that Twitter has played in fostering direct communication within certain industries, communities, and organizations. Substack has been experimenting, trying to fill the void left as Musk-era Twitter devours itself. If you care to investigate, join me on Notes and we can explore this brave new world together.

To join, head to substack.com/notes or find the “Notes” tab in the Substack app. As a subscriber to The New Futurists, you’ll automatically see my notes. Feel free to like, reply, or share them around!

You can also share notes of your own. I genuinely hope that Notes becomes a space where every reader of The New Futurists can share thoughts, ideas, and interesting quotes from the things we're reading on Substack and beyond.

Now, please give a warm New Futurists’ welcome to this chapter’s cover artist, Vincent Cecil! Vincent is an Illustrator and Graphic Novelist who enjoys themes of vintage opulence, glamour adverts, summer memories, and thrillers nestled in the idea of persona. Currently, Vincent is working on his debut Graphic Novel/webcomic retelling of The Great Gatsby. Find him at vincentisvintage.com. Go check out Vincent’s work, follow him on social media, and maybe treat yourself to a print in his shop!

Finally, remember that Southern Gothic is a horror comic and is not suitable for all readers. Chapter twelve features depictions of blood, gore, supernatural horror, substance abuse, and physical violence. Reader discretion is advised.

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If you’re interested in joining Special Agent Grant in his investigation, consider a paid subscription. Below today’s paywall, you’ll receive an unredacted look at Kammler’s master plan, an unlettered version of the chapter 12 cover, and preview pages of Ezequiel’s line work for chapter 13!